German Heritage and Economic Presence in Charlotte and SurroundingsMarch 9/10, 2015

Klaus Becker – Honorary German Consul

Celebrating the Influence of German Art, Culture and Political Thought

Rotarian Mike Hawley introduced Klaus Becker as the Honorary German Consul in Charlotte, but he also provided a background on all the activity surrounding this speech that relates to German influence in this region. Mike spoke about the Global Summit, a visit to Charlotte last week by the German Ambassador to the United States, a recent German Opera Ball sponsored by BMW and the NC Zeitgeist Foundation at Quail Hollow and the substantial German business contributions to our community. Hawley described Klaus Becker as a man born in Marburg, Germany and raised in Dortmund by a family with “steel” in it’s DNA. Becker’s father worked in the steel industry and so did Klaus. He said that Becker was well-read, well-traveled, and fluent in at least 5 languages. Becker came to the U.S. in 1979 and just last year became a U.S. citizen.

For three years, Klaus worked for a third party, before deciding to take the entrepreneurial path that he has followed ever since. He pitched his tent in Charlotte (never with NC) and over the course of many years, he founded several companies involved in the international steel trade. His latest endeavor, Nirosteel LLC (specialty steel and alloy products), celebrated its 5th anniversary in 2014.

Klaus was appointed as Honorary Consul of the Federal Republic of Germany to Western North Carolina in January, 2014. He has a passion for contemporary art, as evidenced by his "Art in the Office" (at his NIROSTEEL, LLC location in Charlotte) and his Chairmanship of the newly formed NC Zeitgeist Foundation.

Becker’s presentation was broken into four parts. First, he wanted us to know about Germany. He described Germany as smack dab in the middle of Europe, about the size of NC, SC and Virginia in land mass, surrounded by nine countries, with a population of about 81 million inhabitants ranking 18th in size in the world.

Second, Becker spoke about the German heritage in the Charlotte area and the Carolinas. He said that besides the Scotch Irish who settled this region, many of the balance were German. He commented that the Germans began arriving to the U.S. in 1607, but that a wave of people came between 1750 and 1800 by way of Pennsylvania. Believing that Pennsylvania was too populated, the Germans traveled the 435 miles down the “Great Wagon Road” from Lancaster, through Virginia and across the Shenandoah River, following the Piedmont to Charlotte and to South Carolina. He commented about Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg who married the British King who was a little “cuckoo” but nonetheless had 17 children. Those German settlers worked in agriculture, growing cotton, and then introduced textile machinery to this region.

Third, Becker spoke about the economic presence of Germans in this area. He remarked that there are 3500 German companies in the U.S.; there are 500 in NC and SC; there are 200 in the 16-county Charlotte region. Notable companies include, Siemens, Pfaff Molds, ZF, Bosch, and many others. German manufacturers include Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, but also little firms with more than 50 employees up to 7000 workers (the so-called “Mittelstand” companies).

Why do these companies like Charlotte? First, the airport provides easy access to Germany. Second, so many customers and suppliers are here, Third, the German culture is active here. Fourth, there is a good, hard-working base of employees here. And fifth, the Germans can fit into this community without overtly “standing out.”

Becker’s fourth topic was focused on his job as Honorary German Consul. He is most anxious to represent German art, history, culture and influence to this area. He said, “I want to be a credible, serious, thoughtful, and trustworthy representative of Germany to American people.” He is working to improve personal interaction through the NC Zeitgeist Foundation, bringing great speakers, artists, authors and politicians to this area.

Klaus Becker certainly adds richness to our community and left us with a much better understanding of the cultural and economic impact that German immigrants have had on our region.